Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Dear Kraftwerk fans,

Sorry it took me a day to write this, but it was important for me to first understand all of the facts so they could be properly communicated. First and foremost, we are deeply sorry for the frustration and massive inconvenience that yesterday's on-sale for Kraftwerk caused for many of their great fans around the world. I recognize that so many of you spent hours in front of your computer watching a spinning wheel--or watching the page go blank. Please allow me to explain what happened and what we'll do to correct this for the future:

MoMA has been a really great partner of ShowClix for over a year now, and we've worked with them to move tens of thousands of tickets successfully. They leaned on us to help them with this on-sale, which was a special event for them, and we let them (and you) down. ShowClix has successfully executed many very large, high-demand on-sales over the past five years that we've been in business. Most of these on-sales have a high demand, with a great deal of inventory to sell. Kraftwerk's eight-night performance on-sale was a very unique situation. While we're not able to disclose the number of tickets that were available for these performances, what I will say is that of the tens and tens of thousands of die-hard Kraftwerk fans from around the world that logged on at exactly noon EST yesterday to get these tickets, the venue capacity restrictions would only ever allow approximately 1.20% of them to actually be reserved. As you might imagine, this is an extremely large technical hurdle, particularly because of the tiny fraction of supply versus the demand.

Still, this is no excuse. We should have never advised MoMA to allow the tickets to be sold in the fashion in which they were, because in the end--even if everything were to go smoothly--many people would have been very disappointed. ShowClix didn't set the proper expectations from the beginning, nor did we properly prepare our load balancing servers in order to prevent the queue from timing out. Ultimately, we failed many of you.
Since yesterday, we have discovered that a single setting within one of the lower levels of our queuing system's middleware bubbled-up under the heavy load and caused frequent timeouts. There were also some issues with the broadcast system which allows us to communicate with ticket buyers while they're waiting in the queue. We should have both of these problems resolved by the end of this week. However, even with these problems resolved, it is my belief moving forward that we should not perform an on-sale all at once for an event or venue that has such small capacity restrictions versus potential demand. Instead, we will advise our clients on various alternative methods to fairly sell tickets to an event that has such a small fraction of inventory available versus the potential demand.

There were certainly technical problems around this event. Contrary to some reports, however, our servers never crashed or went offline, and none of our other clients or their events experienced a problem during the Kraftwerk on-sale. We always keep high-demand on-sales separate from all of the other activity happening on our server. It's also important to note that there were online sales successfully processing the entire time, and all eight of the events sold-out in approximately 60 minutes.

In closing, regardless of what the technical problem was--or how we plan to solve it in the future--we haven't overlooked the incredible amount of frustration many people felt from the on-sale. We take full responsibility. This company was founded and continues to be run by a big team of live entertainment and technology addicts. We feel for you, the fans, and our partner, MoMA, and vow to work hard to prevent such a debacle from happening again in the future.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

''Dear Kraftwerk fans, we didn't think so many of you guys would try to buy tickets for shows in a venue that only hold 500 people, so we didn't think of bulking up our servers, or maybe putting this onsale via a reliable ticketing site such as ticketmaster. All of you that did get tickets, be happy.''

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Kraftwerk was pretty terrific last night in the first show of their retrospective at MoMA. The centerpiece was Autobahn, though they played songs off of every one of their albums. They opened with "The Robots" and performed half of The Man-Machine in all. The 3D was alright, but sound was incredible and the space was small - there were maybe only 300-400 people there. If you're in the area and can finagle tickets, get there.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

In recent years, as Hollywood has been bitten once again by the gimmick of 3-D, legendary critic Roger Ebert has routinely taken to Facebook and other corners of the internet to lambast the film industry for its craven efforts to wring more money out of cinema-goers. I tend to side with Ebert on the topic though. As the parent of a 4th grader, I’ve certainly given in and donned silly glasses for 90 minutes in the pursuit of entertainment. I wonder what Ebert might think of Kraftwerk using a vast 3-D screen as part of their eight-night audio-visual series at the Museum of Modern Art.

The conceit with Kraftwerk is that while they’re undeniably futuristic, there’s a certain level of classic kitsch in the mix. It must have blown people’s minds when they first heard “The Robots” or “The Man-Machine”, for example, though much of the imagery of that time period was based on a Modernist movement which was already 40 years old. It’s within this dichotomy of retro-futurism that Kraftwerk initially found its relevance, and it’s there where they remain relevant today.

As a fad, 3-D film made its biggest initial splash in the early 1950’s, giving audiences “Astounding! Astonishing! Amazing!” experiences with schlocky flicks like The Mad Magician and It Came from Outer Space, in an age of cinema gimmickry where theatergoers found their seats vibrating and 30 different syncopated smells sprayed in their faces. The experience, we’re told, is different today than it was even in recent years past, and I suppose there’s some truth to that because we no longer have to wear glasses with one red lens and one blue (though as another throwback, those old timey glasses are on the cover of a fancy Kraftwerk book sold in the MoMA gift shop).

Perhaps it’s because I’m jaded, but 3-D in the modern age isn’t packing much more of a punch than it ever has. Which brings us back to Kraftwerk.

The MoMA retrospective is billed as a complete run-through of Kraftwerk’s entire back catalogue, providing one ignores their first few albums and begins with 1974’s digital travelogue, Autobahn. Over eight consecutive nights, Kraftwerk is performing an album in its entirety, though each show also contains highlights from other releases. The residency’s opening night (Tuesday, April 10) kicked with “The Robots,” a single from 1978’s The Man-Machine, before Autobahn was tackled in full. It was a shrewd opening salvo, introducing the longstanding half-gimmick of the members of Kraftwerk being robots themselves (a point actually first made in the lobby where robot versions of the four current members of the group slowly moved…well…robotically in glass cases. It was as though Disneyland’s Hall of Presidents had been overrun by the aliens in This Island Earth.

To the credit of Kraftwerk and MoMA, the Marron Atrium could have probably held twice as many people as they let in, but in the spirit of the immersive experience they allowed attendees to have a bit of breathing room. And honestly, if you’re speeding down the vast expanse of the Autobahn wearing cardboard 3-D glasses, the last thing you want upsetting the fantasy is being packed like sardines on the L train during the morning commute. The 3-D was great about half the time, and the other half it wasn’t particularly necessary. Whether 3-D added anything to the experience of seeing the sleek lines of the “Trans-Europe Express” come reasonably to life on the large screen behind the group is hardly the point. The evening included 3-D because 3-D is very Kraftwerk.

There they stood, nearly perfectly still, for just shy of two hours, resplendent in black bodysuits that were equal parts Tron (the original, ‘natch) and Spider-Man’s symbiotic Venom costume. Ralf Hütter is the sole remaining founding member of Kraftwerk, with his longtime co-conspirator Florian Schneider having left the fold in 2008. If it’s possible for a group largely modeled after barely animate robots that hasn’t released new music in nearly a decade to have an essential member, Hütter certainly fills the bill. Most of the lead vocals—often monotone, but with a vulnerable humanity—on the group’s classic tracks came from Hütter, and it remains so on stage in New York; he wears the only headset microphone, and any other voice heard comes via loops or outer space or wherever.

The future-past theme only holds water until the music comes into the conversation; nearly 40 years ago, Kraftwerk must have seemed as though they’d beamed in from another dimension, a window into a clean, emotionless yet oddly sexy future. And they still sound like that today, because for all the shit they influenced, and all the iPad apps that can create music on the fly, we still haven’t caught up to what Kraftwerk were doing as far back as Autobahn in 1974. I thought perhaps it was a trick of the eight-channel video and sound installation developed solely for this series of performances, but listening to the music now on my tiny laptop speakers it still brings me back to the future.

Tickets for the retrospective quickly sold out, adding to the exclusivity of the event, though the entire affair was as civilized as one might expect given the venue. Besides a guy in a wizard hat and sandals playing a harmonica, no one prowled the line outside hoping for a spare ticket. Inside, personal space was respected, and no one rushed the stage or craned their necks in vain to see over the group’s lecterns to find out how they made all those wonderful sounds. The crowd looked like something out of a Kraftwerk song, sharply dressed, all with the same goofy white cardboard 3-D glasses. A few danced, but most were struck with awe at a legendary group bringing their aesthetic to life in the heart of Midtown Manhattan.

Whether you made any of the performances or not, it’s worth heading across the East River to Queens for a presentation of Kraftwerk’s historical audio and visual material at the MoMA PS1 Performance Dome through May 14. For more information, visit www.moma.org.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

I don't think they'll make it in but hopefully my vote will help!

For the first time in its history, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will offer fans the opportunity to officially participate in the induction selection process. Beginning on Thursday, October 4 and continuing through December 5, the public can vote for the five nominees they believe to be most deserving of induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The top five artists, as selected by the public, will comprise a "fans' ballot" that will be tallied along with the other ballots to choose the 2013 inductees.

go commit voter fraud, Kraftwerk only has to get into the top 5 to get the extra vote for induction, they're currently about tied for 6th with Public Enemy..less than a percent is all that's needed for them to win.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

German electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk play eight live performances in Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall in their first London dates since 2004.

KRAFTWERK - THE CATALOGUE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 is a chronological exploration of the group’s sonic and visual experiments and presents eight classic master works from across their celebrated repertoire with spectacular 3D visualisations and effects.

Combining sound and images, the performances showcase nearly 40 years of musical and technical innovation, including new improvisations, 3D projections and animation. Commencing with Autobahn, each night covers one of Kraftwerk’s groundbreaking studio albums in full and appear in order of their release — Autobahn (1974), Radio-Activity (1975), Trans Europe Express (1977), The Man-Machine (1978), Computer World (1981), Techno Pop (1986), The Mix (1991) and Tour de France (2003) — alongside additional compositions from their back-catalogue.

Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider began the Kraftwerk project in 1970 at their electronic Kling Klang Studio in Düsseldorf, Germany. Within a few years they had achieved international recognition for their revolutionary electro “sound paintings” and musical experimentation with tapes and synthesizers. With their visions of the future they created the soundtrack for the digital age. Their compositions, using innovative looping techniques and computerised rhythms, have had a major international influence across a range of music genres. Their use of robotics and other technical innovations in live performance illustrates Kraftwerk’s belief in the respective contributions of both man and machine in creating art.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Kraftwerk fans irate after Tate Modern ticketing fiasco

To say Kraftwerk fans were unhappy might be an understatement. "We are livid," said Angela Kennedy, standing at the end of a queue of about 200 people in Tate Modern's chilly Turbine Hall hoping there were still enough tickets. "We got here at the crack of dawn [around 10am] and were turned away – that was after trying on the phone since 7.30am."

Kennedy, style director of Woman & Home magazine, was one of thousands caught up in Tate's ticketing fiasco after the online booking service for Kraftwerk's London gigs, in February, crashed almost immediately at 7.30am. The next option was the phone, which for most people, was constantly engaged.

Kennedy and her colleague Emma Badger work around the corner from Tate Modern so assumed they might be among the lucky ones. "We were told there was no facility to buy tickets in person, you'll have to phone. So we've been on the phone all morning – along with our work of course," she added. "We work for Women & Home so we can multitask."

By the time they turned up again, four nights had been sold out, but Tate staff encouraged them to be optimistic. They should not have been. After another two and a half hours queueing, and with just a dozen people left in front of them, they were told everything had sold out.

Many people had a difficult time trying to buy tickets for Kraftwerk yesterday, and we apologise unreservedly for that. We had anticipated a significant volume of interest but our website was overwhelmed by the phenomenal number of people attempting to access it simultaneously. This meant the majority of tickets had to be sold over the phone and we apologise for the long wait and frustration this has caused. We believed that our system could cope with the volume so did not appoint a third party ticketing site.We expected to sell most of the tickets online before the galleries opened and did not anticipate selling tickets in the gallery. Some customers came to Tate Modern and we made the late decision to sell tickets to them to avoid their disappointment. We are sorry that this was not communicated as an official route to buy tickets and subsequently led to more frustration from other customers trying to buy tickets online and by telephone.
All tickets for Kraftwerk have now sold out. Please do not purchase tickets through a secondary sale as we cannot guarantee their authenticity. Access to the events will only be permitted with the credit/debit card used to make the purchase.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

I will probably attempt to go for The Mix night since it is on a Friday but I'd loooove to catch any of the first 4 showings if possible. It'll be hard for me to make it down to LA during the week so close to the two Coachella weekends however :-(

I wonder how the selection process will go if not everyone who registers get's an email.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

What priority is everyone gonna place on these shows? I need to see Audobanh for sure then Trans Europe, Computer World, Man Machine, and Tour in descending order. Not sure how this gonna work w/ the 4 limit over all 8 but hoping to catch at least 2-4.

Re: Kraftwerk MoMA Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

I would put my priority as The Man-Machine, Trans Europe Express, Computer World and Radio Activity, mostly because I don't picture them using guitars and keyboards when recreating Autobahn, which is pretty essential for that record.